MORRIS COUNTY — In an email to Senator Joe Pennacchio’s district office, a constituent related the frustrations and fears of her friend who after conferring with a telemed doctor, went to the emergency room with symptoms of COVID-19. With no test, New Jersey does not allow the patient access to antiviral therapy (hydroxychloroquine).
The patient was sent home to “fight it out,” the email said.
“It is heartbreaking. People are ‘begging’ for help,” said Pennacchio (R-26). “No one should ever have to beg for their government to allow their doctors treat them.
“I felt so helpless,” said the Senator.
The letter-writer implored the Senator to “Please help us! We in NJ are desperate.”
Under the Governor’s executive order, hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine may be prescribed and dispensed for treatment of COVID-19 outside of a hospital only if supported by a positive test result.
“The Administration must stop procrastinating, waiting for test results, and delaying possible life-saving medication. The State needs to stop interfering with the doctors and let them treat patients with the tools that are available today,” Pennacchio said.
There has been growing support across the globe for the use of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) to treat the virus and control the pandemic. The list of successes that doctors have treating with HCQ continues to grow.
“People are learning about the positive results patients are getting from hydroxychloroquine. Understandably, they want to try this medication when they get sick,” Pennacchio said.
“The idea of requiring patients to have a full-blown case of coronavirus and get tested before doctors can treat them with the medication of the doctor’s choosing is absurd and dangerous. The State must unshackle doctors and allow them to use the tools they presently have to treat their patients,” the Senator concluded.
